Electrical connecter device



Bee.- 9," 1924. 1,518,436

- A. P. LEINEN 1 ELECTRICAL CONNECTER DEVICE Filed Feb. 27, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Dec. 9, 1924- Q 1,518,436

A. P.'LEINEN ELECTRICAL CONNECTER DEVICE Filed Feb. 27, 2 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Dec. 9, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFHQE.

ARTHUR I. LEINEN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T BENJAMIN ELECTRIC MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLI- NOIS.

ELECTRICAL CONNECTER DEVICE.

Application filed February 27, 1922.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR P. LEINEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Electrical Connector Devices, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to electrical connecter devices, an d more particularly to twoway plugs.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide an improved two-way plug which will be durable and efficient in use, cheap to manufacture and easy to assemble.

Further objects will appear from the detailed description to follow and from the appended claims.

In the drawings in which an embodiment of my invention is shown- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a two-way P Fig. 2 is an axial sectional view of the P s;

Fig. 3 is an unassembled view of parts of the plug, parts being broken away;

Fig. 41 is a bottom plan view of the plug; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the receptacle contacts and their mounting.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the construction shown therein comprises a two-way plug having one longitudinally extending outlet, and one laterally extending outlet. The plug portion has a center contact member 10, formed as the head of one of the assembly screws, a swivel shell contact 11 and an insulating base 12, on which the contacts and 11 are mounted.

The receptacle portion, as indicated in Figs. 3 and 5, is so constructed that it can be completely assembled, and afterwards electrically and mechanically connected with the plug portion. This receptacle portion is provided with an outlet 1, extending longitudinally of the axis of the plug, but offset with respect thereto, and an outlet 14 extending laterally of the axis of the plug portion, and located with its inner portion between the outlet 13 and the plug portion.

The casing 15 which houses the receptacle contacts comprises two sheet metal. cupshape members 16 and 17, united at their Serial No. 539,379.

edges as indicated at 18. The receptacle contacts are mounted in the lower cupshaped member 17, as indicated in Fig. 3.

The manner of mounting and assembling the receptacle contacts is shown in Fig. 5. As shown in Fig. 5 in the mounting of the receptacle contact, use is made of three similarly shaped metal stampings 19, 20 and 21, and of a pair of fibre insulating discs or washers 22 and 23. The insulating fibre discs 22 and 23 are secured to the inner faces of the inwardly extending flanges of the threaded shell receptacle contacts 24 and 25, respectively, by means of eyelets 26 and 27, which also serve to secure the stampings 1S) and 21 to the threaded shell contacts 2 1 and 25. These stampings 19 and 21 also serve to electrically connect the shell receptacle contacts 24k and with the plug shell contact 11, as will be described more in detail hereinafter.

In order to facilitate the securing of the stampings 19 and 21 to the shell contact 25, the lower ends of these stampings are bent to provide foot portions through which the eyelets 27 are inserted. The central stamping 20 is secured to the insulating discs 22 and 23 respectively, by means of eyelets 28 and 29 respectively, the heads of these eyelets which lie within the threaded shell contacts 24 and 25 respectively, being utilized as center contacts.

In order to facilitate the securing of the stamping 20 to the insulating disc 23, the lower end of the stamping is bent to provide a foot portion through which the rivet 29 is inserted. The upper end of the central stamping is bent to provide a foot per-- tion' into which is threaded the screw 30, the head of which forms the center contact 10 as hereinhefore described. Thus the stamping 20 serves not only to assist in supporting the receptacle contacts in place, but also to electrically connect the center receptacle contact with the plug center contact. This central screw 30 also serves to support the entire receptacle portion and hold it in position on the plug portion.

For electrically connecting the stampings 19 and 21 with the plug shell receptacle contact 11, an annular contact member 31 is provided through which a pair of screws 32 and 33 extend, and are threaded into the foot portions 34-. and 35 formed at the upper ends of the stampings 19 and 21 respectively.

This annular contact member 31 is provided with oppositely disposed upwardly bent portions 36 (Fig. 1) which bear against the lower edge of the plug threaded shell contact 11. These upwardly bent portions 36 exert a spring pressure against the plug threaded shell contact 11, thus not only insuring good electrical contact, but also providing a frictional engagement whereby the receptacle portion of the device may be used as a handle for screwing the plug into a receptacle. This frictional engagement per inits the receptacle portion to be turned to any desired position alter the plug portion has been screwed home.

In order to prevent relative rotation be tween the insulating plug base and the reccptacle portion, the annular conductor member 31 is provided with a pair of upwardly bent tongues 37, which extend into recesses in the base 12.

in order to support the upper end of the casing member 16 and to insulate it from the live parts, a pair oi insulating fibre washers 38 and 39 are provided, clamped together to embrace the upper edge of this casing member 16, and held together by means of a central eyelet 4:0 through which the screw 30 extends. The screws 32 and 33 previously referred to also assist in clamping these fibre washers 38 and '39 onto the upper edge oi? the casing member 16.

The usual fibre sleevestl and 42 may be provided for insulating the lower casing 1'7 from the receptacle contacts 2st and The edges of the portions 16 and 1''? of the housing are secured together by bringing them into o-verlappii'ig relation as shown in Fig. 2, and then bending two opposite portions of the lower casing 17 inwardly into oppositely disposed depressions in the upper casing 16 as indicated at 43 and 4 1-, (Fig. 2).

In constructing and assembling the device, the receptacle contacts and the parts associated therewith, and also the lower casing section 17 are assembled together as shown in F 3, the upper casing section 16 is assembled with respect to the insulating washers 38 and 39, the two casing sections 16 and 17 are brought together and secured, the screws 32 and 33 being screwed in place into the foot portions 34 and 35 of the stainpings 19 and 21, and the entire receptacle portion and housing as thus assembled is secured to the plug portion by means of the single central securing screw 30, which is screwed into the foot portion of the central stamping 20.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as ne and desire to secure by Lettors Patent of the United States is:

1. A two-way alug device, provided with an outlet extei'itling longitudinally of the plug and a laterally extei'iding outlet, said device comprising a plug shell contact, a

plug center contact, two receptacle shell coiitacts, two receptacle center contacts, and a stamping for supporting said receptacle shell contacts and electrically connecting them with said plug shell contacts, said receptacle shell contacts each having a flange portion, said stamping having a foot portion at one end secured to one of said flanges, a foot portion at the other end secured adjacent the outer end of the plug shell contact, and an intermediate portion secured to the flange of the other shell contact, said stamping lying substantially within the confines oi the cylindrical surface in which the plug shell contact lies and being practically unsupported by insulation intermediate its ends.

2. A two=way lug comprising a plug shell contact, a plug center contact, two receptacle shell contacts, and two stampings, the first stamping supporting said receptacle shell contacts, and electrically connecting them with said plug shell contacts, the sec ond stamping being provided with center receptacle contact members, said receptacle shell contacts each having a flange portion, said first stamping having a foot portion at one end secured to one of said flanges, a foot portion at the other end secured adjacent the inner end of the plug shell contacts, and an intermediate portion secured to the flange of the other shell receptacle cont-act, said second stamping having a foot portion, an insulating disc secured to said foot ortion and to one of said flanges, said ioot portion lying adjacent and parallel to said flange, said second stamping having a foot portion at the other end secured adjacent the axis of the plug, and having an intermediate portion ancl an insulating disc secured to said intermediate portion and to said other flange, said intermediate portion lying adjacent and parallel to said flange.

3. A twoavay plug comprising a plug shell contact, a plug center contact, two receptacle shell contacts, and two stalnpings, the first stamping supporting said receptacle shell contacts, and electrically coimecting them with said plug shell contacts, the second stamping being provided with center receptacle contact members,- said receptacle shell contacts each having a flange portion, said first stamping having a foot portion at one end secured to one of said flanges, a foot portion at the other end secured adjacent the inner end of the plug shell contacts, and

an intermediate portion secured to the. flange of the othershell receptacle contact, said second stam ing having a foot portion, an insulating disc secured to said foot portion and to one of said flanges, said foot portion lying adjacent and parallel to said flange, said second stai'uping having a foot portion at the other end secured adjacent theaxis of the plug and having an intermediate portion, an insulating disc secured to said intermediate portion and to said other flange, said intermediate portion lying adjacent and parallel to said flange, and a screw extending axially through the plug portion and threaded into the foot portion of said second stamping and electrically connecting said stamping with the plug center contact.

t. A two-way plug comprising a plug shell contact, a plug center contact, two receptacle shell contacts, and two stampings, the first stamping supporting said receptacle shell contacts, and electrically connecting them with said plug shell contacts, the second stamping being provided with center receptacle contact members, said receptacle shell contacts each having a flange portion, said first stamping having a foot portion at one end secured to one of said flanges, a toot portion at the other end secured adj acent the inner end of the plug shell contacts, and an intermediate portion secured to the flange of the other shell receptacle contact, said second stamping having a foot portion, an insulating disc secured to said foot portion and to one of said flanges, said second stamping having afoot portion at the other end secured adjacent the axis of the plu and having an intermediate portion, an in sulating disc secured to said intermediate portion and to said other flange, the foot portions and intermediate portion of one stamping lying parallel to the foot portions and intermediate portion respectively of the other stamping.

5. A two-way plug comprising plug contacts, receptacle shell and center contacts,

and a sheet metal casing for housing the receptacle contacts, said casing comprising two-cup-shaped members united at their edges, the upper cup-shaped member being secured to the plug portion, said shell receptacle contacts being mounted on said lower cup-shaped member, said shell receptacle contacts being secured together as a subassembly unit and being insertable into said lower cup-shaped member after being secured together, and means whereby the receptacle contacts may be mechanically and electrically connected with the plug contacts after the receptacle contacts are mounted on said cup-shaped housing member.

6. A plug receptacle comprising a plug portion and a receptacle portion, said plug portion comprising a center contact and a shell contact having an inwardly extending flange, said receptacle portion comprising shell receptacle contacts each having an in wardly extending flange, and means for supporting said receptacle shell contacts and electrically connecting them with said plug shell contacts, comprising an integral stamp ing having portions for engaging the flanges of said receptacle contacts, one of said receptacle shell contacts having its axis extending longitudinally of the axis of said plug shell contact, said stamping lying substantially within the confines of the cylindrical surface in which the plug shell contact lies and being practically unsupported by insulation intermediate its ends.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name.

ARTHUR P. LEINEN. 

